Gringo Bandito Hot Sauce – Gringo Bandito’s label says it all; The too-cool for school hombre on the front of the bottle may look laid-back, but he’s got plenty of ammo in his bandoliers to get the job done. Gringo Bandito’s relatively low heat allows you to slather it with gusto on anything under the sun without later wishing you could cut your tongue out, but the sauce packs enough firepower and delicious flavor to keep your taste buds from taking a siesta. This lightweight yet zesty vinegar-based sauce sneakily turns a dull pile of eggs or a bland burrito into Cinco de Mayo of the face. There’s no need to worry about problemas south of the border, as the heat comes off with a pleasant warm tingling sensation that even a dyspeptic grandmother could handle. The robust combination of habaneros, jalapenos, and chilis won’t overwhelm your food, it will just make it taste a million times better.Continue Reading

Insane Chicken’s Cluckin’ Hot Sauce – InsaneChicken sells the world’s finest hot sauces, so why make their own? Simply, because they’re damned good. Insane Chicken’s Cluckin’ Hot Sauce is described on the label as a ghost pepper (popular name of the mega-hot bhut jolokia) sauce, but in fact it’s a potent blend of peri peri peppers, ghost peppers, and concentrated pepper extract, which adds up to one fiery concoction.

Cluckin’ Hot Ghost Pepper Sauce is a nice, very thick reddish-brown sauce, with the peppers floating in a stew of red wine vinegar, tomatoes, onion, and molasses. I like that the thickness of the sauce means that it stays where you put it, rather than dripping off meat or spilling all over the plate. Continue Reading

Outta the Park BBQ Sauce – Everything in this sauce that can be all natural is all natural. Sugar, brown mustard, ketchup, sea salt, hot pepper sauce, molasses, vinegar, ginger, butter, paprika, apple cider — all of it is all natural. And check out the addition of the butter, which contains some cream. It accounts for the over-the-top silky- smooth richness of this sauce, and it certainly qualifies as one of the most unique ingredients I’ve ever seen in a BBQ sauce.

I took Outta the Park BBQ Sauce straight to the grill and tried it on pork steaks, chicken, T-bones, and even catfish. Straight from the bottle, I knew this was going to be one of those barbecue sauces that occupied a place of honor on my sauce shelf. My wife tasted it and went as ballistic for it as I did. Continue Reading

Mad Dog Inferno Reserve Hot Sauce – You can see the trouble waiting for you through the bottle. Mad Dog Inferno is dark brown with some blood or brick red overtones. You can see the concentrated pepper extract waiting for you — daring you — to give it a try. Unless you are bullet proof, this stuff should be used sparingly, and if you seriously want to taste it straight from the bottle, as I did, you need to limit your intake. I would not be going overboard telling you to sample with a toothpick. Seriously, that’s all you need to get the message.

The ingredients here are vinegar, molasses, concentrated pepper extract, garlic, jalapeno pepper, onion, habaneros, chile extract, clove, and some herbs and spices. With this much extract, you know it’s not for the innocent. Continue Reading

First of all, the creative packaging rocks. A piece of rope holds a piece of real soap around the neck of the bottle, going along with the Hawgwash theme. The soap smells good and is great for washing your hands while you’re preparing your barbecue feast. Continue Reading

Great White Shark Predator Hot Sauce – Like the predator this sauce is named for you, it creeps out at from the swirling dark blue waters to attack. I really expected a fairly mild heat level to this one and was surprised to find that its bite is as deadly as the Great White Shark’s.

The burn here is slow and almost sensual. It begins with a sharp hit, then backs off to allow you to enjoy the taste of the sauce, then it begins building again, until you find yourself wiping the sweat from your brow. That first taste and this experience are worth the price of a bottle. Continue Reading

Georgia Peach and Vidalia Onion Hot Sauce – This is what I like to refer to as a designer sauce. Not only is it a designer sauce, it is so finely crafted that it can be referred to as a work of art. The hook for this sauce is the Georgia peaches and the Vidalia onions, both of which provide an intensely sweet flavor that never overpowers the senses. This sauce perfectly complements anything you use it with. It’s a highly versatile sauce and one you need to keep on hand in quantity because it is so addicting and so functional.

If heat is your thing, you won’t get the kick you’re looking for here. Continue Reading

Mad Dog 357 Hot Sauce – 357, 000 on the Scoville heat scale. That’s damn hot. The label has a long list of terms of agreement before you use this sauce. That’s because Mad Dog sauces are violently hot. If you’re one of those guys or girls that like pain, this is a sauce for you.

I’ve tried it alone and with foods. Even as an additive to other foods, Mad Dog 357 is only marginally workable, and then only if you have enough common sense to use it in moderation.

Bear Claw Chipotle Barbecue Sauce – This sauce has a deep, reddish-brown color and an exceptional pour quality. It lays perfectly over any meat you use it on and cooks to a nice and thick consistency, allowing its flavor to stay with the meat and compliment every bite.

Any sauce made with chipotle stands a chance of being good. The smoked peppers give it a taste that suits barbecue well. In addition to the chipotle peppers in Bear Claw, there’s a tomato sauce base with sugar, worcestershire sauce, salt, crushed pineapple, pineapple juice, and some bell peppers. None of these ingredients, including the pineapples, take away from the wonderful smoky taste of the chipotles, which remain the key flavor personality throughout. Continue Reading

Wimp Retardant Hot Sauce – Actually, the full name of this sauce is Professor Payne Indeass’s Butt Blazin’ Recipe #3 Wimp Retardant Hot Sauce, but that seemed like an awfully long title for a review. The old-timey label features a man, presumably Professor Payne Indeass (get it?) himself, arms outstretched with a bottle in his hand, a top hat on his head, and his mouth open wide. I can just imagine him saying “Step right up…” A crowd gathers around the edges of what appears to be a picture frame. I like that the label leaves about an inch and a half of the back of the bottle uncovered so that you can easily see the pepper seeds floating around inside. I rate the old-fashioned packaging 5/5. It creates the feel they seem to be going for.

The label of Smoky Iguana Chipotle Pepper Sauce features a rare sight: an iguana smoking a cigar — in camouflage, no less. He is climbing onto a rock, apparently leaving the flames of battle behind him, as he smokes his victory cigar. His name is Iggy, of course, and there is a cute little story about his adventures on the side of the bottle. The slogan tells us, “It’s so good, it’s smokin’.” Aside from the implied heat of the flames on the label, this sauce makes no claims of extreme heat. It even describes itself as “Smoky, savory and sort’a hot.” When so many milder sauces seem to feel the need to describe themselves as the hottest stuff on the planet, such honesty is refreshing. I freely give this label 5/5 for its creativity. Continue Reading

Widow Hot Sauce – First of all, if you have forgotten what the bottle looked like when you placed your order, you will likely be quite startled as, while unpacking your order, you find a big black spider on the bottle. Not on the label — on the bottle! It’s plastic, of course, but the two seconds it took me to process that fact were quite disturbing. The yellow, black, and red label also features a black widow — with the distinguishing red hourglass on her belly — sitting in a web. Blood drips from both her fangs and from the words “Widow” and “No Survivors.” There is also a warning that reads, “Extremely HOT SAUCE. Use one drop at a time!” I give the dramatic, attention-getting label 5/5. You really can’t help but notice it — and perhaps wonder whether you are up to the challenge. Continue Reading